Stop Writing Boring Scenes -- Use this Secret 9-Step Formula

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  • Опубліковано 10 лис 2024

КОМЕНТАРІ • 100

  • @zagorsk1
    @zagorsk1 Місяць тому +102

    "be late with your scene" jokes on you, im late on writing in general

    • @emeralddraegon
      @emeralddraegon Місяць тому +2

      Lol Don't worry; you're not alone.

    • @Starolfr
      @Starolfr 24 дні тому +3

      Oh, yes. I'm about a decade (or two?) late, myself. ;)

    • @ian-online
      @ian-online 19 днів тому +1

      i'm stuck on outlining, it's so annoying...

    • @DreamCatcher101-6
      @DreamCatcher101-6 2 дні тому

      Same here, over a decade, and the best I have done is writing two scenes ​@@Starolfr

  • @deedee4955
    @deedee4955 Місяць тому +97

    0:16 Start late, end early (dive straight into action, end after the climax)
    1:37 Use the plot engine (how will you make readers keep reading)
    1. Hidden Identity
    2. Threat of violence
    3. Character's lie
    3:22 Make scenes multitask (merge scenes)
    4:34 Play with time (speed up and slow down the action, skip boring stuff)
    5:28 Supercharge your conflict (giving information is boring, add tension, disagreement etc)
    7:06 Make your characters change (learning, changing or growth)
    8:00 Make sure the scene is essential to plot progression
    8:56 Prioritize actions and dialogue over thoughts and backstory
    9:44 Three essential questions for every scene
    What would happen if I cut a scene?
    What has changed by the end of a scene?
    How does the scene move the plot forward?

    • @tearstoneactual9773
      @tearstoneactual9773 Місяць тому +8

      Not all heroes wear capes.

    • @CalvinNoire
      @CalvinNoire Місяць тому +1

      Bookfox is cooked.

    • @deedee4955
      @deedee4955 Місяць тому +1

      ​@@CalvinNoirewell you still want to watch his video for explanation 😅

    • @Memkiss
      @Memkiss 20 днів тому

      ​@@CalvinNoire Not necessarily. I like coming back to really informative videos like this one to munch over some points with newly gained knowledge and experience to check how it affects my understanding of the topic. Time marks like these make it super easy to come back to exactly the part I wanted to listen to again, so it increases the likelihood of me coming back to watch the video, not just putting it in the 745th place on my maybe-to-do list. Quick, convenient and efficient. Love them time stamps ❤❤

  • @b0therme
    @b0therme Місяць тому +27

    I recently reread SHOGUN. Every scene is driven by conflict! Some conflicts are subtle, but every scene has some. The effect propels the reader through the book! It is hard to put down.

    • @Bookfox
      @Bookfox  Місяць тому +4

      It's a classic!

  • @imaginepageant
    @imaginepageant Місяць тому +20

    I’m always worried that I have too much dialogue and action and I need to be more introspective… so this was very reassuring! 😊

    • @Bookfox
      @Bookfox  Місяць тому +2

      Glad it was helpful!

    • @____uncompetative
      @____uncompetative 20 днів тому +1

      Allowing some introspection early on can allow your protagonist to feel three dimensional to the reader and free you from having to say everything they are thinking as a result of events in the action as your story naturally gathers pace towards its gripping climax/resolution. You don't want to bog everything down with everyone's thoughts all the way through.
      Frank Herbert only got away with doing that in his doorstep of a science fiction novel _DUNE_ because his visualisation of a galaxy more than 10,000 years in the future where humanity had become alienated from itself (so there were no need for any aliens) is what made that novel such a success despite all the internal musings all the way throughout.

  • @-qi8dt
    @-qi8dt Місяць тому +15

    My favorite writer / coach, because you give actionable tips. Other youtubers are so vague it doesnt help me. Thank you for making these

    • @Bookfox
      @Bookfox  Місяць тому +2

      You're so welcome!

  • @shebreathesingold8043
    @shebreathesingold8043 Місяць тому +26

    This was really helpful. Please include more videos on scene structure. These are pretty uncommon online. Most people focus on the overall story rather than this important unit of story. Thanks!

  • @anthonywritesfantasy
    @anthonywritesfantasy 2 місяці тому +94

    "If you can write a great scene, you can write a great book."

    • @stevecarter8810
      @stevecarter8810 Місяць тому +10

      Or at least an anthology of great scenes

    • @5Gburn
      @5Gburn Місяць тому +7

      ​@@stevecarter8810Thank you. Thank you for writing this. Story needs glue, like sticky, stringy glue between two hands, where there are many crisscross threads connecting between them.

    • @reachthezora1912
      @reachthezora1912 Місяць тому

      ​​@@5Gburnthough, this is a good starting point.

    • @anthonywritesfantasy
      @anthonywritesfantasy Місяць тому

      @@5Gburn So, not a fan of Cloud Atlas I take it??

  • @kayesparks5355
    @kayesparks5355 Місяць тому +7

    I watch a lot of UA-cam videos about writing, editing, and publishing and you are by far my favorite. This video is gold and I am saving it for future reference. Thank you for making such incredible and practical content!

    • @Bookfox
      @Bookfox  Місяць тому +1

      Wow, thank you!

  • @Eldalynn
    @Eldalynn 2 місяці тому +5

    This is a wonderful guide. I don’t see enough people talking about scenes and how they build upon one another to make a story cohesive.

    • @Bookfox
      @Bookfox  Місяць тому +1

      Appreciate the kind words. Glad it could help.

  • @Venz228
    @Venz228 26 днів тому +1

    Honestly love how this video itself already follows the start late and end early! Great and insanely useful video, straight to the point and wastes no time!

  • @ravenramsey3115
    @ravenramsey3115 21 день тому

    I'm mostly blind, and have two kids. I used to have readers in college and audiobooks, but I haven't done a lot of reading lately. My first impression of this video is, If ever seen has to be action-oriented, it seems very exhausting to read the book. As a writer I love to write introspectively, but I appreciate what you're saying about moving a scene forward. This video makes me want to pick up more books, or audiobooks and find a time to read more so that I can analyze the scenes like you said! Thank you for making this video

  • @sultanalshirah
    @sultanalshirah 2 місяці тому +6

    Great timing. I was rewatching all videos waiting for more. I'm gonna enjoy this.

  • @TedMattos
    @TedMattos 2 місяці тому +3

    This was extremely helpful. Thanks very much, John!

  • @SGTIvan921
    @SGTIvan921 Місяць тому +2

    I just did a lot of writing and this video came at the perfect time. I can say that overall my scenes have fulfilled a fair portion of the checkboxes that you stated! Especially point 9, all three. Now, I'm excited to go back and check every single one of my scenes and make them even better. Thank you so much! :D

    • @Bookfox
      @Bookfox  Місяць тому +1

      Glad it was helpful!

  • @BidwellRunner
    @BidwellRunner 2 місяці тому +2

    I already start my stories as late as I can, usually starting at the initial incident, but I hadn't considered trying to start each individual scene as late as possible. This is good advice.

  • @hadaryadin6731
    @hadaryadin6731 Місяць тому +3

    I love your videos and get so excited to see there is a new one! They are so helpful

  • @VinnyTheory
    @VinnyTheory Місяць тому +6

    Why’d UA-cam just take down your Hemingway video? You didn’t violate any policy and you put SO much work into it

    • @Bookfox
      @Bookfox  Місяць тому +3

      I know, right!!!! It's because I showed a bullfight. But it's historical video, from seventy years ago, and you can't teach about Hemingway without showing a bullfight! I appealed it and they denied it. So now I'm re-editing the video. SIGH.

    • @VinnyTheory
      @VinnyTheory Місяць тому +1

      @@Bookfoxthe new one just appeared on my newsfeed. Definitely one of the most researched videos on writing I’ve ever seen. All highly-actionable tips. I’m sure it will blow up

    • @johnb2422
      @johnb2422 Місяць тому

      @@Bookfox Why can't you show a bullfight?

  • @christopherdinunnojr2536
    @christopherdinunnojr2536 Місяць тому

    I found this really helpful! I am writing my first novel and ran into this weird halt to my writing. Writing compelling scenes is more than composition; it links it like a train, moving and pushing the development of my plot and concept forward rather than info dumping. Love it! Thanks for your help

  • @kasiako355
    @kasiako355 Місяць тому +1

    Wow, what a gold!! I immediately subscribed😊 Thank you so much 🙏💖

  • @tiredman4540
    @tiredman4540 Місяць тому +2

    Excellent tips, going to use all of them in my WIP.

    • @Bookfox
      @Bookfox  Місяць тому +2

      Yay, have fun!

  • @neofulcrum5013
    @neofulcrum5013 Місяць тому

    I’m glad this exists because I was struggling with what to write next for a scene in my rough draft.

  • @salientrogue3117
    @salientrogue3117 Місяць тому +1

    I’m going through your book and these videos are great supplements to the physical copy I’m notating and marking for reference as I sit to write.

    • @Bookfox
      @Bookfox  Місяць тому +1

      Thanks for getting a copy! Yes, wonderful that you're using the book and videos side by side.

  • @RcascadeD
    @RcascadeD Місяць тому +6

    Does anyone else think he did a great job starting and ending the video using his scene techniques?
    John: "Then you have written a scene that has earned a right to stay in your book." End scene!

    • @Bookfox
      @Bookfox  Місяць тому

      Ha ha! I try! I hate it when UA-cam videos dribble on at the end.

  • @arkycookie
    @arkycookie Місяць тому +2

    This is really useful with some very enlightening tips 🙂

    • @Bookfox
      @Bookfox  Місяць тому

      Glad you think so!

  • @NYCAmore
    @NYCAmore 2 місяці тому +2

    Absolute gold.

    • @Bookfox
      @Bookfox  Місяць тому +1

      Thank you!

  • @ConfusedSpaceCapsule-nu8bc
    @ConfusedSpaceCapsule-nu8bc Місяць тому

    Brilliant insight, man. This was most useful. Good job.

  • @gothicwriter9897
    @gothicwriter9897 27 днів тому

    Enjoyed this. Useful stuff. Thanks.

  • @deedee4955
    @deedee4955 Місяць тому +1

    That is super helpful, thanks!

  • @MK-fi6mh
    @MK-fi6mh 2 місяці тому +2

    Thank you.

  • @dericortiz2713
    @dericortiz2713 Місяць тому

    I really dig how you present information with one caveat: I would appreciate more concrete examples. at 4:29 you talk about breaking down a scene to see what it's doing. That would be a great video in itself if you ever have the time. Thanks for the resources you're creating

  • @Faolandia
    @Faolandia Місяць тому +10

    Each one of these steps is gold. And their usefulness is not limited to scenes. In my opinion, *everything* in a novel should multitask. Keep that bit of advice in mind and HEAPS of lackluster dialogue will be eliminated, for instance. But why ah why did you call it the "secret formula"? This is such a red flag, usually, that I almost ignored the video because of it...

    • @Bookfox
      @Bookfox  Місяць тому +6

      Agreed on the multi-tasking point!
      And sorry for the title. The algorithm rewards catchy titles. But my goal is that no matter how click-baity the title, I make sure to back it up with excellent content.

    • @stevecarter8810
      @stevecarter8810 Місяць тому +1

      This one title-writing trick that audiences LOVE TO HATE ! ​@@Bookfox

  • @Kemintiri
    @Kemintiri 2 місяці тому +3

    Awesome timing, but now I have to scrap like a third of my first act LOL

    • @Bookfox
      @Bookfox  Місяць тому +3

      Sorry? Ha ha. But hopefully the story ends up better in the end.

    • @Kemintiri
      @Kemintiri Місяць тому +3

      @@Bookfox oh no, don't apologize. This is the exact reason i sub to your channel. :) I'm writing a trilogy from the last book to the first, and you just saved me a ton of rewrites.

  • @Lukeeeeo
    @Lukeeeeo Місяць тому

    Really great 👍

  • @littleboylost78
    @littleboylost78 Місяць тому +4

    Tarantino chops the last line of action/dialogue from the end of scenes in the final draft

    • @Bookfox
      @Bookfox  Місяць тому +1

      I believe it. :)

  • @letteracura
    @letteracura Місяць тому

    thank you! best wishes:)

  • @Speed202
    @Speed202 Місяць тому

    GOOD STUFF

  • @jaycemcqueen306
    @jaycemcqueen306 Місяць тому +2

    While these are nice, don’t follow all these tips to a T. “Nice characters”/“nice moments” are refreshing every now and then. You don’t always have to have that conflict, while he’s right that you have to find it, just don’t FOCUS on pushing that conflict or making it obvious. Amazing video just think that section was worded a bit funky.

  • @holyoakhall5249
    @holyoakhall5249 2 місяці тому +4

    So how does ALL this advice apply to the cozy reads genre? I'm not sure it's applicable but then I'm not an editor...

    • @Bookfox
      @Bookfox  Місяць тому +2

      Which one doesn't seem to apply?

  • @ghala1600
    @ghala1600 Місяць тому +1

    Never stop making videos

    • @Bookfox
      @Bookfox  Місяць тому

      Thanks! Not planning on it!

  • @aix83
    @aix83 Місяць тому +2

    Starting late and ending early is brilliant advice but what if this is the first scene of the book and I have a LOT of worldbuilding to set up just so that the conflict and the character's actions make sense? I had to extend my scene opening three times because readers kept asking for more context. How do you tell when you're starting just right vs too late?

    • @Bookfox
      @Bookfox  Місяць тому +2

      Start with a scene that shows the world, and then do explicit worldbuilding once you've hooked your reader.

  • @Omenvreer
    @Omenvreer Місяць тому +3

    7:09 doggie or kitty spotted in doorframe

  • @MilnaAlen
    @MilnaAlen 11 днів тому

    My story would have had even less dialogue and more thoughts if I had written it from the perspective of Vaslav Nijinsky instead of Felix Yusupov. He spent several years without speaking at all, but he was always thinking and feeling deeply. I cheated a bit and used Nijinsky's writing as dialogue like 3 times in my story, because it was easier, but mostly the other characters understand him without words.

  • @MilnaAlen
    @MilnaAlen 11 днів тому

    The ratio of thoughts and backstory to dialogue and action varies a lot between different books though. In Search of Lost Time? Lots of thoughts and backstory. Colleen Hoover? Mostly dialogue and action. And books are the best medium to delve into a character's thoughts!
    It's decent advice if you want to be a commercially successful and popular author currently though. With TikTok full of people who only read the dialogue, works like In Search of Lost Time are much less likely to get published, much less become bestsellers.
    I would rather just write very psychological, philosophical and literary fanfics that are read by like 30 nerds. Besides it's a Secret History and Like Minds fanfic where they are Classics students in 1920s Oxford, of course the characters live in their heads too much.

  • @gladeon-hb9iu
    @gladeon-hb9iu Місяць тому

    hey i really like your channel and your work, please can you make a video on how to progress the plot
    the problem with me is that im more of an idealist(idk if thats a real word) i get wonderful and intersting ideas about writing something but *i just dont how how to progress that plot* ,
    for ex:
    one time i had a plot about a species that has evolved when humans did, but have hidden themselves for millions of years as they deemed humans dangerous, evolving perfectly against us from the shadows and now they are out to get us
    i decided the story will go over both species POV, ours and thiers, and to show the readers that we are not the good guys and neither are they, we are just as cruel as them and they are just as cruel as us, even if they look like monsters they are no much of a monster than a bear or a lion, scary but still just an animal
    but i just dont have any idea on how to progress this, like how do i start or how do i make it well...a story, stupid question to ask ik but im just a newbie in this and i have no idea how to start writting these mini stories that will progress the plot and stuff
    so please if you can PLEASE MAKE A VIDEO ON THIS

  • @ToTheNines87368
    @ToTheNines87368 9 днів тому

    This is definitely great advice, but a part of me feels that following this relentlessly can be bad as well. Aren’t you underestimating the reader, thinking they can’t handle slower paced scenes at all?

  • @mah2418
    @mah2418 Місяць тому +1

    What about the scene that characters try to emotionally support or comfort each other in a calm situation for example after the conflict or before one?
    They are nice to each other and there may not be a great conflict, so how can they still remain in the story?

    • @stevecarter8810
      @stevecarter8810 Місяць тому +2

      Ask yourself what the scene is for.
      If it's to cement their friendship so that later it's dramatic when they are separated, do that. If it's to underline a lesson they have learned that will come up again when defeating the big bad, do that. If you can't answer what the screen is for in the story, maybe scrap it.

    • @mah2418
      @mah2418 Місяць тому

      @@stevecarter8810
      Thanks

  • @arunvishnuk3947
    @arunvishnuk3947 Місяць тому +1

    Rings of power writers really outgh to watch this...

  • @Ruckoos
    @Ruckoos Місяць тому

    I have a question but it isnt related to scenes: Is it okay if my novel is written in Spectral font, and if not what fonts can I use?

    • @Bookfox
      @Bookfox  Місяць тому

      I'd use something standard like Times New Roman.

  • @NotAnIlluminatiSpy
    @NotAnIlluminatiSpy Місяць тому +4

    I don't use scenes at all... I just don't get it. I probably should. I know I'm technically using scenes, but it's not on purpose. I just spam out chapters...

    • @emaanshahid2105
      @emaanshahid2105 Місяць тому

      The first works I wrote were like that too. But it makes it uneditable. I'd reread the last day's work and scrap all but a few lines. Instead of pouring out all the toys in the box, you just pick out the four or five you really wanted and go back to the rest later.

    • @NotAnIlluminatiSpy
      @NotAnIlluminatiSpy Місяць тому +1

      @@emaanshahid2105 I've definitely had days where I can't press on, and the only way I can move forward is to delete like, 2k words and move in a different direction.

  • @PianoMan-hx3ev
    @PianoMan-hx3ev Місяць тому

    Biggest Question: How to MANAGE all of these moving pieces! 😮

    • @Bookfox
      @Bookfox  Місяць тому

      Writing is tough. I know.

  • @Novastar.SaberCombat
    @Novastar.SaberCombat Місяць тому

    But without coin, connections, crews, clout, computer code, control, corporate communities, and opulent opportunities... not even *exemplary* work will matter. That's just how it is. No money nor manpower for marketing equals no recognition; no exceptions.

    • @Bookfox
      @Bookfox  Місяць тому +1

      Stop thinking in either/or. Yes, you don't have all those C words, but you can still do the best you can, and get SOME readers.

  • @alyssapowell1799
    @alyssapowell1799 21 день тому

    I have a feeling the whole "start late, end early" is why the Game of Thrones scene where they cut away from moments the fans have been waiting for years to see and call it good writing. F that. The problem is when you piss off your viewers by taking away the moments they want to see. That's a guaranteed way to end up ruining a tv series.

  • @sultanalshirah
    @sultanalshirah 2 місяці тому

    First

  • @AnaGuillenBachs
    @AnaGuillenBachs 2 місяці тому +2

    When we can see the draw and the winners of this challenge: ua-cam.com/video/hMifPtrIBp8/v-deo.htmlsi=WVsubw58SF2Lu33E. ?!?!?!?!?!